Enriching The List, Enriching Learning
Children from St Thomas Church of England Primary School in Werneth, Oldham have been exploring their local listed buildings, as part of their involvement in Historic England's Heritage Schools programme.
Focussing on Oldham Town Hall they investigated its history and heritage before creating art work which was uploaded on to the National Heritage List for England - enriching The List whilst enriching their learning!
Watch this short film of children from St Thomas Primary, as they discover the history of their local area and enrich The List.
How did St Thomas Primary School get involved?
Year 2 teacher, Steven Eastwood decided to plan a local heritage project on the listed buildings in his local area after attending a Heritage Schools training session on 'Enriching The List'.
Finding local buildings on The List
In a classroom activity Steven introduced the pupils to listed buildings. They thought about what makes some buildings special or significant, why they should be protected and why some buildings might be on the National Heritage List for England. They also explored The List for listed buildings near them. They discovered, to their delight, that their school was on The List, before turning their attention to Oldham Town Hall, another Grade II listed building.
Fact finding at Gallery Oldham
Gallery Oldham's education team and Oldham Local Studies and Archives were also keen to collaborate on this exciting project and to develop an activity they could repeat with other school groups. The school group visited Gallery Oldham who led a fact finding session on Oldham Town Hall and devised a heritage trail for the pupils, providing information and images to tell its story.
Creating their own art works
A local artist who works with the school accompanied the pupils on the trail and helped them to sketch images of the town hall and take photographs of its features. The pupils then worked with the artist back in the classroom using a variety of media to create artistic representations of the town hall in paint, charcoal and clay.
Lastly, Steven scanned images of the pupils' artwork, and as a class they uploaded them to Oldham Town Hall's entry on The List - enriching it for the world to see!
For me the biggest thing would be that when the children are next walking in Oldham, they look up. They point things out to mums and dads and go “Wow! That’s the Town Hall… Did you know the town hall….” They pass that knowledge on and they appreciate the heritage that’s all around them….
What is the National Heritage List for England and why does it need enriching?
The National Heritage List for England, known as The List, is the official, up to date, register of all listed buildings and sites in England. You can find it online and search for listed buildings near you.
Did you know 99% of people live within one mile of a listed building or site?
Historic England is asking the public to enrich The List. In other words, to bring the list to life with local information and stories, images and photos, even art work and creative writing.
Discover how you can enrich The List
If you want to enrich The List with a group of young people, there is also a handy teachers guide.
There is more information about Heritage Schools on the Historic England Website.
If you would like to know more about Gallery Oldham's role in the project, or you are a school in Oldham who would like to book this workshop, contact Gallery Oldham.
Editor's note: All details correct at time of publishing. In May 2023, Enriching the List became the Missing Pieces Project.
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